STUDY: Minnesotans Are Among The Nation’s Happiest

A recent study from WalletHub has found Minnesota to be among the happiest states in the nation. So, what is it that makes Minnesotans so happy?

WalletHub used factors like the depression rate, share of adults feeling productive, income growth and the unemployment rate to rank all 50 states.

WalletHub:

In order to determine the happiest states in America, WalletHub compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Emotional & Physical Well-Being, 2) Work Environment and 3) Community & Environment.

We evaluated those dimensions using 30 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing maximum happiness.

Finally, we determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Hawaii was ranked as the happiest state in the country. The Aloha State ranked first overall in emotional/physical well-being and third in community/environment.

Maryland was ranked as the second-happiest state, followed by New Jersey, Utah and Delaware rounding out the top-five.

Minnesota ranked sixth on the list. The Land of 10,000 Lakes was ranked twelfth in emotional/physical well-being, fourth in work environment and eighth in community/environment.

Minnesotans had the second-best Adequate Sleep Rate, behind only Vermont, and the third-highest volunteer rate behind only Utah and Wyoming.

“In addition to pursuing your passions, having a good work-life balance and maintaining an emotional support network, another key way to boost your happiness is living in the right place," said Chip Lupo of WalletHub. "The happiest states are those that provide above-average quality of life in a wide variety of areas, from strong state economies and high quality physical and mental health care to adequate amounts of leisure time and good weather.”